On Wednesday, Brandon's brother Patrick is leaving for his first tour in Afghanistan. A little scary for Brandon, for me and his mom. We are so proud of Patrick for all that he does. He is a great dad, a great son, a great brother, a great friend and a proud soldier who loves his job and protecting his country.
Patrick was 12 when Brandon was born and was sooo excited to have a younger brother. He could not wait until the news of Brandon's birth. He rushed to the hospital about 30 minutes after I delivered and wanted to see for himself. At the time we were not aware there were any issues with Brandon's health. He was very concerned as we all waited for over a month as Brandon stayed in the ICU. When Brandon came home Patrick was not concerned with all the machines, medicines, and how fragile he was. He was just so glad to have his brother home. For the next year Patrick lived with us and was a key reason Brandon survived his first year. He was there for every major event, holding Brandon, playing with Brandon and taking care of him.
After my divorce from Patrick's dad, Patrick still wanted to be very involved with Brandon. Patrick's mom and I worked together to make sure that Patrick and Brandon were able to spend quality time together. Patrick would come at summers, holidays, occasional weekends until he was done with High School. Shortly after High School and some college, Patrick decided he wanted to join the Air Force. This was before 9/11. The Air Force and Patrick were a great match and he has continued ever since. We still continue to see and talk to Patrick on a regular basis.
Patrick and Brandon have a very special bond. Really he is one of the few people who really "get" Brandon and Brandon knows it. He can make Brandon laugh. He can carry a conversation with him and Brandon still wants to cuddle with Patrick even at 17. Brandon loves his brother. When Brandon was 4 years old he had not started walking. Patrick was coming to spend some of the summer with me and Brandon and I was dreading telling Patrick that I had ordered a wheelchair for Brandon. When I did, Patrick cried and said that by the time he left for the summer he was going to make sure Brandon walked. He did not want Brandon to permanently need the wheelchair. I told him to go for it, not knowing how that would end, but totally supporting his efforts. At the time we had a long hall in the house with carpet all the way down the hall. Patrick walked with Brandon all day and into the night every day for the entire summer. About halfway through the summer Brandon began taking steps. That was a real motivator and Patrick continued. By the end of the summer Patrick had Brandon in the front yard walking about 50 steps at a time. SUCCESS. Everyone was so proud of Patrick and to this day we have barely used that wheelchair. It now has a new owner.
Brandon was there at the hospital when Brandon had his two surgeries and at Dell when Brandon had H1N1. He just wanted to see for himself that Brandon would be alright. I could go on and on about other stories of Patrick and Brandon because there are some many other times Patrick has made a difference in Brandon's life. But I will spare everyone.
Patrick now has a son of his own and a nephew for Brandon. His name is Landon. Patrick is as dedicated to Landon as he is (and more) to Brandon. We all love Patrick and Landon at this house.
So Patrick you will be very missed by Brandon and me. You are key member of our family. Please take care of yourself, come home to all those who love you and know we are proud of you.
Love leah and Brandon
(picutres in blog)
1 comment:
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